The Jharkhand government has decided to hand over to the CBI the case relating to the murder of a judge in Dhanbad. A chilling video of a vehicle hitting the judge from behind when he was out for a run had sparked outrage and also resonated in the Supreme Court.
A government release said Chief Minister Hemant Soren has recommended a probe into the incident by the central agency. Earlier, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) had been formed on the directions of Jharkhand High Court to probe the case.
Uttam Anand, an Additional Sessions judge, was hit by an auto-rickshaw on July 28 when he was out for a morning run. The CCTV footage shows Mr Anand jogging on the side of a wide, empty road when the vehicle hits him and speeds away.
A passer-by found him lying in a pool of blood and rushed him to the hospital where he succumbed to the injuries. He was identified hours later.
Police have said the CCTV footage makes it clear that the auto-rickshaw hit him deliberately.
"Two people -- Lakhan Kumar Verma and Rahul Verma -- have been arrested and the auto-rickshaw was seized. They have confessed," Amol Vinukant Homkar, Inspector General, has said. The vehicle, police have said, was stolen.
Judge Anand had been handling many cases of mafia killings in Dhanbad town and had recently rejected the bail requests of two gangsters. The murder case of Ranjay Singh, a close aide of MLA Sanjeev Singh, was also pending before his court.
His family has alleged that the police delayed changing the case from "accident" to murder.
Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Ravi Ranjan had expressed dissatisfaction over the alleged delay in filing the FIR and ordered the SIT probe into the incident. The court had said it would monitor the investigation and asked the SIT to provide regular updates. It had also warned that delays in the probe would lead to the case being transferred to the CBI.
The Supreme Court had taken suo motu cognizance of the matter and directed Jharkhand's Chief Secretary and Director General of Police to file reports within a week.
"This Dhanbad case has wider ramifications. We are getting reports that judicial officers are being attacked around the country. We intend to examine this and may seek report from all states," Chief Justice of India N V Ramana had said.
"The High Court has taken up the issue and the case is now on at the High Court. We are aware of the case and we will take care," the Chief Justice of India had said.
The government release has also said that it is the state government's priority to ensure that the investigation is completed soon and family members of the judge get justice.
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